Olberic Eisenberg
"To what end do I swing my blade?" '' — Olberic, when selected from the main screen. ' ' is one of eight playable characters in ''Octopath Traveler. He was also one of the two playable characters in the ''Project Octopath Traveler Demo''. A knight from a lost country that is searching for a purpose in life, Olberic resides in a village in the Highland region. He is a survivor of Hornburg's fall, a kingdom that fell to ruin after a war had torn its lands asunder. Appearance Olberic has black hair that is slicked back with white streaks. A strand of his hair is left unfixed to give the impression of a cowlick. Olberic has one scar that goes from his left temple to his forehead that is most likely from the nick of a blade. He's usually seen wearing a blue tunic with metal shoulder guards and a metal bracer on both hands along with leather sleeves, pants, and shoes. His sword is strapped to the left of his hip. In some official art that features him with the other seven heroes, Olberic is the tallest among all of them. Personality Prior to the fall of his country, Olberic was a knight who put the safety of his liege and kingdom first of all. He seemed to have dedicated his life just for the place, itself. After the fall of his country, he had lost the drive of becoming a knight and constantly questioned himself as to what his reason of living could be. Gaston, the boss of the brigands he had encountered in his starting chapter, described how his eyes looked dead and only lit up like the flames when mentioning Erhardt. History "Your name is Olberic, and you are a warrior. You were once a brave knight, until you lost king and kingdom in a bloody coup. Today, you serve as a master-of-arms for a small mountain village. "To what end do I swing my blade?" The question tortured you night after restless night. Then, one day, you hear a name from your past, giving you new purpose..." — Olberic's description when selecting him. Prior to Story Before moving to Cobbleston, he was known throughout the land as the "Unbending Blade" due to his sheer power and with how he handles his sword. Olberic served under the king of Hornburg with his friend, Erhardt, before losing both land and master to a war. Not only that, he discovers how the one person that he treated as equal and brother to be a traitor, slaying their liege right in front his own eyes before besting him in battle. After losing his country in the war, he moved to a secluded village and hides under the alias 'Berg' as opposed to his real name to hide his identity and allow people to think that the mighty Olberic Eisenburg died along with his country. He acts as the town's combat teacher, aiding the townsfolk in protecting their home from nasty brigands that roam the area. Olberic stayed at Cobbleston for about eight years before the events that soon stir his resolve once more start. Relationships Erhardt Olberic, during his time in Hornburg, worked alongside a man named Erhardt. He mentioned how he had seen Erhard as an equal and a brother, before the latter slew their liege. It was by Erhardt's hand did Olberic lose everything and started to question the reason why he swings his blade. However, it is eventually revealed that Erhardt only slew the king because he did nothing to save his own home when it was razed to the ground when Erhardt was just a child. This caused Erhardt to harbor a heavy grudge against the king and his kingdom and ascended in the ranks as a knight with the sole purpose of one day having vengeance on him. In the end however, despite the fact he succeeded with his revenge plot the hole in his heart did not mend and he quickly wondered what his purpose for wielding a sword was any longer. This allowed Olberic to understand Erhardt when they would confront each other yet again in Wellspring and they quickly engaged in a dual. In the end, Olberic seems to forgive Erhardt for his misdeeds, blaming the true mastermind behind Hornburg's fall. Philip A boy that strives to become a knight just like Olberic. He is the protégé of the knight, living in Cobbleston along with only his mother. During the beginning of Olberic's story, Philip can be seen watching him teach the rest of the town guards some fighting lessons. Before long he is kidnapped by bandits that attacked the town, forcing Olberic to give chase and come sword to sword with Gaston, an affiliate of Erhardt and the one who holds his sword. Once Olberic decides to leave the town, Philip asks him to make a promise to return and that he'll one day grow up to be a strong knight like his teacher. Gaston The leader of the bandits that attacked the town and kidnapped Philip. He was the one who gave Olberic the fire to return in his eyes after being dead for so long. Though they are not on close terms, they have managed to acquaint themselves just enough for the both of them to help each other — Olberic makes sure that his group is not harmed when in the gaol and Gaston giving pointers as to where Erhardt may be. Werner As the true puppet-master behind Hornburg's fall, and the despot who overthrew the previous lord of Riverford and ruled with tyranny and fear, Olberic shows great contempt and hatred for Werner. Unlike other opponents that Olberic has fought on his journey, he shows no respect for Werner whatsoever, also finding disgust in him using his great power only for himself, which greatly opposes Olberic's reason for using a sword, which is to help others. Battle Olberic is your stereotypical physical wall that can defend other allies from a foe's attacks, potentially saving them from a strong blow that could cause them to be incapacitated. His Talent, Bolster Defense, ''allows him to power up his own defenses in exchange for BP points which prove useful when facing enemies that have high physical attack along with a stronger guard that takes a bit more to break. He comes equipped with polearms and swords as his weapon, giving him decent versatility in finding enemy weaknesses. As a warrior, Olberic has no innate access to any elemental spells which end up being crucial in a lot of fights outside of his own region, making him focus on his physical bulk and sacrificing his elemental stats in exchange for being a wall. Warrior Skills '''Support Skills' Subjobs Below are the sprites and appearance changes for Olberic with each Subjob: Each time a subjob is selected the appearance of the chracter will also change. The first sprite is the appearance with no Subjob equipped. Gallery |-|Art= TableCharacters.jpg Olberic Art.jpg Olberic.jpg Octopath Countdown 5.png Octopath Traveler OST Cover.png Octopath Blackboard.png Octopath Traveler Sketch.png Octopath Cafe Banner.png Octopath Traveler Released.png Octopath Lineup Female to Male.png Octopath Art by M.Nishimura.png Octopath Traveler x Bravely Default.png |-|Sprites= OlbericMerchant.png OlbericDancer.png OlbericApo.png Olberic.png Etymology Olberic's '''name could be derived from the name '''Olbert, that means 'famous for his inheritance' in Frisian and German, possibly pointing out how he was famous for his swordsmanship, which was inherited by Philip and the guards of Cobbleston. Trivia * Olberic's last name may be a reference to Eisenberg, a town in another Square Enix ''title, ''Bravely Default. * He is one of the few heroes who’s sprite changes in their first chapter or starting point, the other being Tressa and Therion. ** This happens on two occasions. The first being when he wakes up from the dream, his normal warrior clothing converting into brown, simple clothes that look similar to what the NPCs wear. The second being when he finishes his confrontation with Gaston, he changes back into his normal warrior outfit, signifying his return as Olberic Eisenberg. * Olberic is 35 years old, making him the oldest traveler. * According to one of the tavern banters, Olberic is like a bottomless barrel when it comes to drinking and is the type to laugh uncontrollably once he reaches his tipping point. * According to another tavern banter, he cannot swim. Category:Characters Category:Travelers